Vietnamese priest: Government loosens control of seminary admissions

Published: 2008-03-26

NHA TRANG, Vietnam (CNS) -- Permission for a third major seminary to recruit an unrestricted number of students is a sign that the Vietnamese government is loosening restrictions on religion, said the seminary's rector. Since Stella Maris Major Seminary reopened in Nha Trang Diocese in 1991, every other year it has accepted 10 students from each of the neighboring dioceses of Buon Me Thuot, Nha Trang and Quy Nhon, said Father Pierre Pham Ngoc Phi, rector. The seminary used to give a list of 40 to 45 candidates from those dioceses to government authorities, who would approve only 30, he told the Asian church news agency UCA News in mid-March. Recently, he said, the government has not limited the number of recruits, so last September the seminary admitted 44 students, instead of 30, from the three dioceses. He said that on Sept. 28 the seminary received permission to recruit annually from each diocese. The two major seminaries based in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City received the same permission from the government, in 2005 and 2007, respectively. Six major seminaries train priests from 26 dioceses throughout the country.

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